Mitchell Basran has been spotted on the various Bolt Action Facebook pages working hard on some impressive vehicles. We asked if he could share some of his knowledge and can now bring you his “King Tiger – Painting the tank!”
Mitchell: Hi 🙂 I wanted to make this heavy tank the centrepiece for my upcoming Waffen-SS army. I went for a really beaten up and weathered look in preparation for the many battles it’s about to see!
I primed the Model with Vallejo grey primer using my airbrush (a Harder & Steenbeck Evolution).
After the model was primed I started with the base colours, using the modulation set from AK Interactive. The modulation technique (smooth highlights and lighting effects) really gives the model more detail, and really makes it pop on the tabletop.
To do this I started from dark to light, working in gradients as smoothly as possible and making sure the light wasn’t too sharp on the edges. After that, I added the camouflage and applied the decals. I do the decals now so that they can be weathered into the tank.
The next step is a pinwash and chipping. This step will give a lot more definition and define the detail on the model.
Next up is the weathering. Starting on the turret. I added some subtle streaking and rust effect using AK Interactive streaking grime and streaking rust, followed by the spilt oil effects.
Oil gets everywhere so I placed some spilt oil on the back of the engine deck and some on random places across the hull. A little here and there to begin with so I don’t overdo it, I then hold the tank at arm’s length to view it from all angles to see if it looks ‘right’ before adding more.
The last part of the weathering for me is the mud effects. I find you have to work in different stages to get the best effect. On the tracks, I used three different colours of earth pigment, blending them together with MIG pigment fixer.
Then there is the splashed mud. I make these small mud splatters using a brush and a toothpick. This works very easily, just load up your brush and flick it against the toothpick toward the area you want to be splattered.
Finally, the last thing I have to do are the tracks on the hull. I used my airbrush and used the colour Rust Tracks, from ammo. Then I used a mix of oil colours, red primers, and rust to give it that final rusty look.
I have used a lot of different products to achieve this weathered look. I think it came out really good and I hope you like it too! One King Tiger ready for combat 🙂 Mitchell Basran
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Fire up your engines and head into combat!
Dan Hewitson
Tom Mecredy
Craig Nixon